Chapter 111: Battle of North Soqya (Part 7)
Giovanni Draghi and Balotelli fled Dolrcocha in haste, with only about a hundred citizen-soldiers remaining beside them.
The sounds of slaughter in the city ceased before dawn, but the two dared not return.
The next day, after sunrise, Giovanni and Balotelli saw Lanwan Viscountcy flags, blue and purple, flying from the city towers and walls.
"The Oran people are simply too cunning. General, let's return to Badan first," the adjutant advised.
"Nonsense! Elder Alvaro of Camela is about to arrive. How can I return now?" Giovanni retorted angrily.
Balotelli actually wanted to persuade Giovanni to return to Badan first, but he also understood Giovanni's predicament. With such a disastrous defeat, if he returned to Badan looking so pathetic, Giovanni's future would be utterly ruined. He might even be expelled from the city-state by an enraged Citizen Assembly, possibly even losing his life. It was better to take the remaining troops and seek refuge with the Camela army. If he could follow Alvaro and secure a victory, he would at least have some face-saving explanation upon returning to Badan after the war.
Thus, Balotelli remained silent.
Giovanni and Balotelli gathered the stragglers who had escaped the city outside Dolrcocha. Initially, the two were apprehensive, fearing the Oran knights in the city might suddenly sally forth. However, as their contingent grew larger, the garrison within the city showed no intention of bothering them.
A day passed, and Giovanni surprisingly managed to gather over three thousand stragglers. This "battle result" nearly brought Giovanni to tears of joy.
Although he now had three thousand troops, Giovanni still only dared to camp far from Dolrcocha, hugging the coast, looking ready to board the ships and flee at any moment.
Having fought for so many years, Giovanni possessed some military sense. He understood that warfare often hinged on morale. The three thousand troops under his command were just shells, their morale completely shattered. Even a haphazard charge by the knights in the city could likely cause these three thousand men to immediately rout.
If not for wanting to maintain a shred of dignity, Giovanni would have ordered the entire army to board the ships and drift offshore.
Over three thousand men endured a night of sea breeze and light rain by the shore, with almost no one able to sleep. When morning came again, faint sails appeared on the gray sea surface, and the men almost cheered.
It was the fleet from Camela.
Alvaro, clad in ornate golden armor, a red-tasseled helmet, and a red cloak, led his troops ashore. His first sight of the Badan army's condition left him astonished.
The Badan army before him was not only drastically reduced in numbers but also in terrible shape. Every citizen-soldier had bloodshot eyes and haggard faces. Several soldiers standing together might not even have a complete set of armor among them. Many soldiers lacked even a spear, holding only wooden sticks.
"What happened to you?" Alvaro asked in surprise.
"We were ambushed by the Oran people..." Giovanni embarrassedly recounted their ordeal from the previous night.
As expected, Alvaro's expression turned disdainful. "Indeed, I've long said Badan people don't know how to fight!"
Alvaro didn't lower his voice at all. The Camela troops behind him burst into laughter upon hearing this. The Badan citizen-soldiers were ashamed and angry, but having just suffered a humiliating defeat, they couldn't argue, only enduring the Camela soldiers' ridicule with bowed heads.
"Let's go, move out," Alvaro waved his hand and ordered.
"Ah, Elder Alvaro..." Giovanni asked hesitantly, "Where are you going?"
"Where else but to attack the city?" Alvaro replied.
"The garrison in the city is very elite. You and your citizen-soldiers have traveled far. Shouldn't you rest first before attacking?" Balotelli suggested.
Alvaro retorted without thinking, "To allow so many of you to escape after such a successful night raid proves the enemy doesn't actually have many troops. Attacking immediately is the best choice."
With that, Alvaro led the Camela army towards the walls of Dolrcocha.
Giovanni was forced to follow with the Badan citizen-soldiers. The Camela contingent numbered over two thousand this time. Combined, the total force reached six thousand again.
Although he claimed the garrison in Dolrcocha couldn't be large, Alvaro still made thorough preparations before the assault. He immediately set up scorpion ballistae to prevent griffin knights from attacking his formation, spent the better part of the day constructing siege engines, and bombarded the city walls with ballistae before launching the assault.
"General Draghi, would your Badan citizen-soldiers like to lead the charge and regain your honor?" Alvaro asked Giovanni.
"This..." Giovanni looked away awkwardly. Given the Badan soldiers' current morale, forcing them to assault the city would likely cause the army to disintegrate immediately.
The disdain on Alvaro's face deepened. He loudly ordered, "Warriors of Camela, show our allies how war is fought!"
"Roar!"
"Teach the Oran people a harsh lesson!"
"Roar!"
Over two thousand Camela citizen-soldiers roared in unison.
The first wave of Camela citizen-soldiers, shields raised in one hand, scaling ladders in the other, charged towards Dolrcocha's walls, agile, high-spirited, fearless, like fierce beasts.
However...
Five hundred meters.
Four hundred meters.
Three hundred meters.
Two hundred meters.
One hundred meters...
Silence reigned atop Dolrcocha's walls.
The Lanwan Viscountcy flags still fluttered in the wind, and shadowy figures of defenders could still be seen on the walls.
But there were no horns, no war drums, no arrows, no falling stones...
The Camela citizen-soldiers easily placed their scaling ladders against the city wall.
Giovanni, Balotelli, and the Badan citizen-soldiers watched, dumbfounded.
Then, the Camela citizen-soldiers began to climb the walls, step by step. Still no counterattack from the enemy. The citizen-soldiers successfully vaulted over the battlements.
Alvaro also frowned, filled with suspicion.
Soon after, a Lanwan Viscountcy flag and an "Oran defender" were thrown down from the wall...
"Elder! There are no defenders in the city! Only these flags and scarecrows on the walls! The west and south gates are blocked with giant stones! The east and north gates are open!"
A citizen-soldier who had successfully "entered" the city ran back to report.
Looking at the scarecrow dressed in clothes and wearing a helmet, Alvaro's mouth couldn't help but twitch. The more solemn and cautious he had been before the assault, the stronger the feeling of being mocked and humiliated now.
"Pfft..."
A muffled laugh came from the Badan ranks.
Alvaro glared angrily in that direction but couldn't find the source. So, he vented his anger on Giovanni: "General Draghi, the enemy used a few tattered flags and some scarecrows to hold you off for a day and a night!"
Giovanni flushed red. After the previous night's raid, he and his soldiers had been constantly worried about the Oran troops attacking them; how would they dare approach the Dolrcocha walls to scout?
"Enter the city!" Alvaro ordered.
"Eh?" Giovanni quickly advised, "Elder Alvaro, what if the enemy has an ambush..."
"Damn ambush!" Alvaro cursed. "Can't you see? The enemy retreated long ago, leaving only a small rearguard to delay you. And you Badan people were not only delayed for two days and nights but also utterly defeated by the enemy's small force! Now the enemy's rearguard has also withdrawn! Even a little girl can play you fools! Idiots!"
Giovanni wanted to say that two days ago, he too had thought the enemy had retreated.
But Alvaro gave him no chance to speak, immediately leading his troops into the city after cursing.
The city of Dolrcocha had become even more dilapidated. The previous night's battle, combined with Alvaro's ballista bombardment today, had destroyed many more dwellings. The number of displaced people on the streets had increased. Alvaro was not Dolrcocha's son-in-law; he treated the residents with less courtesy. Anyone daring to block the Camela army's path was met with force, sometimes even lethal force, sanctioned by Alvaro.
The freemen and slaves huddled in street corners and alleys watched batch after batch of soldiers come and go, go and come. Their eyes held little fear or panic anymore, mostly just indifference and numbness.
Alvaro learned some lessons from Giovanni. Besides arranging sentries for city defense, he divided his army into two parts, stationing them in separate camps. This way, even if one camp was ambushed, the other would have time to prepare its defenses.
"General, where should we station?" the adjutant asked Giovanni.
Giovanni observed the deployment of the Camela garrison, then pointed to a marketplace area, "Clear that area, drive out all the freemen and slaves, and we'll camp there."
One of Alvaro's camps was near the north gate, the other near the west gate. Giovanni chose a position behind both these camps. With two Camela camps in front and the north and west walls behind, Giovanni felt secure.
Having just experienced a life-and-death ordeal in Dolrcocha, the Badan citizen-soldiers were reluctant to spend the night there again. When night fell, no one could sleep. The citizen-soldiers remained tense, constantly vigilant against a possible night raid. Not only the ordinary citizen-soldiers couldn't sleep, but Giovanni couldn't either. Every time he closed his eyes, he seemed to hear rustling sounds outside his door.
But it seemed the more one worried, the more likely it was to happen.
At dawn, in the darkest hour, a bloodcurdling scream echoed through the Badan citizen-soldiers' camp.
"Damn it! Can't you be cleaner about it?" Rayne Nazares hissed in a low voice.
"Sorry, he... he moved just now..." Costa Scamario, who had failed to kill the sentry with one blow, whispered defensively.
"Charge in with me!"
Rayne Nazares ignored Costa's explanation. The sentry's scream must have alerted other guards. He stopped concealing his movements and charged into the Badan camp with a loud cry, followed by shadow after shadow.
However, contrary to Rayne Nazares' expectations, the anticipated resistance never materialized. Before the Oran knights launching the second night raid could even properly engage the Badan citizen-soldiers, the Badan army collapsed on its own.
The Badan citizen-soldiers, awake all night, seemed to have been waiting for this moment. The sentry's scream acted like a spark, directly igniting the powder keg of their emotions.
In that instant, the Badan camp erupted into chaos again.
Giovanni, swept away by the panicked mob, was tearful. He had already tried his best to be a coward; why was he still so unlucky? Out of the three camps, why did the Oran troops choose to attack this most remote one?
In fact, it wasn't Giovanni's bad luck, but Charlotte's deliberate choice to target the Badan citizen-soldiers, who had become like frightened birds.
Rayne Nazares, coordinating with another troop of Oran knights led by Ed Adkins infiltrating the Badan camp from another direction, drove the fleeing Badan soldiers towards the Camela camps.
"What's happening?"
Hearing the commotion, Alvaro immediately donned his ornate armor and hurried out of his bedroom.
"Elder, something's happened on the Badan side!" his adjutant ran over to report.
"Those Badan people..." Alvaro wanted to curse the incompetent Badan soldiers again, but before he could speak, he was grabbed by his guards.
"Elder, run! The Badan soldiers are charging in!"
"The Badan soldiers are charging in?"
Alvaro's mind went blank, momentarily unable to comprehend the sentence. Although he disliked the Badan people, and they disliked him, weren't they allies?
However, that was the reality.
Driven by the Oran knights, the fleeing Badan soldiers surged into the Camela army's camp. The Camela soldiers tried to resist, but they were already outnumbered by the Badan troops and were divided into two camps. Caught off guard, how could they stop so many fleeing soldiers?
After several were stabbed by Camela spears, the Badan citizen-soldiers, solely focused on escape, even turned their sharp swords against their own allies.
The two camps Alvaro had carefully arranged were instantly overwhelmed by the tide of fleeing Badan soldiers.
Tonight, with Charlotte's help, the Badan people finally ended their century-long history of never having defeated the Camela people on the battlefield.
Ed Adkins was the first to chase the Badan soldiers into the Camela camp. Illuminated by the firelight, he immediately spotted a small troop of citizen-soldiers still maintaining order, protecting someone as they retreated from the battlefield. Ed Adkins knew without thinking that it must be a commander or someone similar.
So, he pointed towards Alvaro and shouted, "Capture the man in the red cloak!"
Celine heard the order and immediately gave chase.
Two of Alvaro's guards split off to block Celine.
"Oran people?" Alvaro understood Oran language. He quickly removed his red cloak.
Because she needed to remain hidden, Celine hadn't brought her greatsword, instead using a city-state short sword. She found it awkward to use and was momentarily held up by the two guards.
Seeing Alvaro about to escape, Celine quickly shouted, "Capture the one with the red tassel!"
Alvaro hastily discarded his red-tasseled helmet.
"Capture the one in the golden armor!"
Someone else shouted from behind in Oran.
Alvaro stripped off his armor while running.
By now, Alvaro had no guards left, but the pursuers behind him were closing in.
In desperation, Alvaro gritted his teeth and dove into the foul-smelling mud by the roadside, pretending to be a corpse.
Costa, who had arrived last, originally wanted to capture a high-ranking officer to make up for his mistake in killing the sentry. But in the blink of an eye, the high-ranking officer vanished. He slammed his sword into the ground in frustration, "Damn it!"
The sharp sword tip sliced off Alvaro's little finger. Alvaro swallowed mouthfuls of mud mixed with animal dung and days-old human blood, but dared not make a sound.
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